Mayor says experience needed to guide Stockton out of turmoil

STOCKTON - Ann Johnston has heard her share of hot-air jokes, running a balloon shop in town. She laughs them off rather than letting them bother her.

Scott Smith

Ann Johnston:

STOCKTON - Ann Johnston has heard her share of hot-air jokes, running a balloon shop in town. She laughs them off rather than letting them bother her.

"It goes with the territory," she said. "We have survived 32 years. Who's laughing?"

And as mayor of Stockton, she has taken her share of less cordial jabs for leading the city into the history book of municipal nightmares.

Under her reign, Forbes magazine twice put Stockton atop its list of America's Most Miserable Cities. There's the sky-high homicide rate and of course Stockton's dubious status as the nation's largest city to file bankruptcy.

"It's the hardest vote that I've ever had to make," she said, recalling the June 26 council meeting that put Stockton in a global league with the likes of Greece and Spain.

Despite these daunting challenges, Johnston, 70, said she deserves another term in office. Her name will appear on the Nov. 6 ballot with 38-year-old challenger Anthony Silva.

The winner will be charged with leading Stockton out of bankruptcy and making the streets safer. The "to-do" list includes breathing life back into a ramshackle downtown and restoring the ranks and morale of Stockton's police. Bolstering the city's pride is in there somewhere.

"You don't want a freshman running the train," she said. "I'm strong. I'm experienced. I'm determined. I know how to meet challenges. I have proved that."

Born in Oakland, Johnston is the oldest of seven siblings raised in Merced on her family's dairy farm. She earned her bachelor's degree and teaching credential from San Francisco State University before serving two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Iran.

Returning home, she taught children learning English as a second language for three years at Weaver School in Merced. She married Cliff Johnston in 1969, and the couple moved to Stockton in 1977 when he got a job here. They have three adult children.

Ann Johnston entered public office in 1979, winning a seat on the Lodi Unified School District Board, which she held for 13 years. She spent two terms on the Stockton City Council from 1995 to 2002 and became mayor in 2008.

Her oldest son, Eric Johnston, said he recalled his mother's first campaign for the school board when he was in the third grade. She holds the same driving belief today as then that she can make things better, said Eric Johnston, publisher of The Modesto Bee.

"It's not about politics and power," he said. "It's about a sincere desire to help."

Despite Stockton's high unemployment, Johnston takes credit for forcing state prison officials in Sacramento to hire and buy local materials while building a massive inmate medical facility just outside of town.

Despite the flight of experienced officers, she claims as a victory winning state and federal grants to hire more police and most recently launched Project Ceasefire to curb the rampant gun violence.

Johnston's critics insist that she be held accountable for her role on the City Council in the late 1990s when she voted to give police enhanced retirement benefits and lifetime retiree health care, perks that turned out to be unsustainable.

Those generous benefits were among burdens that drove Stockton into bankruptcy. Johnston blamed city staff at the time for misleading the council.

"We were told, yes, we could afford it," she said. "Yes, we would be able to handle this. We rely on staff to give us accurate information to project out our costs."

Sgt. Kathryn Nance, president of the Stockton Police Officers' Association - her most strident critic - is not so quick to let Johnston off the hook.

"She might be a wonderful person," Nance said. "I can only look at the decisions and what she's done for the city."

Nance cited Johnston's reaction in 2010 when officers shot and killed James Rivera, 16, who threatened police with his vehicle. Johnston visited the teen's family but didn't reach out to the officers involved in that death.

Johnston said she and Councilman Elbert Holman were contacted by leaders of Stockton's African-American community and asked to visit the late teen's family. She does not generally reach out to officers, leaving that to the appropriate city staff, Johnston said.

Nance said the announcement of Project Ceasefire appeared to be perfectly timed ahead of the election, raising suspicions.

"Six weeks before the mayor's race and now we've got a plan?" Nance said. "I find it ironic at best."

Johnston responded that the timing was contingent on lining up the funding and gaining support from the local agencies. She would have gladly launched it four months earlier.

Former councilman and bail bondsman Ralph Lee White continues to dog Johnston, accusing her of being ignorant of the city charter and serving more terms in Stockton government than allowed.

White - eliminated from the pack of mayoral candidates in the June primary election - is now acting as his own attorney, pressing his suit despite setbacks.

The Central Labor Council, a coalition including 20,000 union workers living in Stockton, endorsed Anthony Silva, but by a split vote. Johnston's local hire stance won over public-sector building trades.

Marcie Bayne, secretary-treasurer of the Labor Council, declined to speak for or against either candidate. She said restoring safety is a universal demand she's hearing from members.

"I have members who are afraid and live in fear every day," she said. "I think they're looking for someone to say we're going to put the police back - no matter what it costs."

Four years ago educator Clem Lee may have wanted Johnston to lose more than anybody else. He ran against her and lost. Today, he supports her re-election.

He remains critical of Johnston's votes on the City Council, just as he is tough on himself for key votes he cast during his term from 2005 to 2008.

"I think Ann should be a little harder on herself about her role on things," Lee said. "The elected people are the bottom line. If we let ourselves off easy, then who's left?"

Yet, Lee said he believes Johnston and the current council have taken some difficult and unpopular steps to correct a culture at City Hall that was morally bankrupt for years.

He countered criticism that Johnston is blindly walking in "lockstep" with City Manager Bob Deis. Johnston and the council brought in a skilled city manager, and in a functioning government, elected leaders should vote with their city manager more often than not.

"I think that Ann and the council... have really done an admirable job of staying focused on what had to be done against huge odds and huge opposition," Lee said.

David Renison, president of the San Joaquin County Taxpayers Association, said he is not convinced Johnston has owned up to her role in setting up Stockton for its fall.

But he supports her for a second term as mayor, praising Johnston for her commitment and energy.

"If we lost that continuity now, I think it could be disastrous for us," he said. "Through the years, few people have demonstrated the passion as Ann Johnston."

Johnston doesn't always make it, but she tries to visit her balloon shop daily. She still writes all the checks and orders the supplies. It is an occasional escape from the stress of elected office, she said.

"Things can be bad at City Hall," she said. "I come over here and start smiling again."

The Balloonery began inside the welding supply company she ran with her husband, Cliff. Helium is an important component to welding. Balloon sales became popular and she opened her own business.

Juggling her own small business gives her insight into the city and region's financial atmosphere, she said.

Her shop has been at the corner of Harding Way and Sierra Nevada for at least 20 years. Johnston sells to walk-in customers, clowns and supplies party stores in surrounding counties.

"People come in here and they're blown away," she said, dropping one of those balloon jokes she's become accustomed to. "That's part of our lingo."

Johnston is the best candidate because of her integrity, said supporter and friend, Pat Fluetsch. Their sons were in the Cub Scouts together and the two mothers participated together on the parent-teachers' association.

Fluetsch, a retired teacher, said she knows Johnston better than most Stockton residents. Fluetsch has asked Johnston how she can take the public abuse that comes with a life in politics.

Johnston tells her that's part of doing a tough job.

"I think the fact that she was a Peace Corps volunteer in the '60s... really shows that she got that calling to help," Fluetsch said. "That is a basic foundation to who she is."